Harambee’s 2021 project for EFA family farming schools has come to an end. More than 50 families have been able to strengthen their skills, improve productivity and encourage young people to take up family farming rather than migrate to the cities and face serious risks of marginalisation. “I really appreciated the professional and personalised support we received on a regular basis,” said Clementine, 22. “In addition, we have learned the techniques for field conservation by co-managing plastic waste. This allows us to improve fertility and gain in yield.”

   
In Cameroon, half the population lives off agriculture. The sector still has a great deal of untapped potential and could become a reliable source of employment for young people. At the same time, the preparation of young people is generally inadequate because of the poor quality of the training on offer. Faced with this problem, families increasingly feel the need to play an active role in their children’s education. Hence the creation (in the early 1990s) of the ‘EFA -Family Agricultural School’ networks.

Clementina is about to graduate and is very satisfied with her path: “When you finish school, it is difficult to find a job. I like the EFA because after the apprenticeship, if you can’t work on your own, you can find a job very quickly!”

The project supported by Harambee was conceived and carried out by “Coordination Nationale des Ecoles Familiales Agricoles du Cameroun -CNEFAC”, a non-profit association specialised in training young people and families through its network of family agricultural schools with experience in alternating school-work pedagogy.

Download here the Final Report of the EFA Kolara Project